Holder for divisional propellent charges



NQV. 7, 1939. E. J. MCCORMICK 2.178.597

HOLDER FOR DIVISIONAL PROPELLENT CHARGES Filed March 2, l938 Invent or Edward LLMEEDFTTLiEk Attorney Patented Nov. 7, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Edward J. McCormick, Spencer, N. 0.

Application March 2, 1938, Serial No. 193,539

lclaim.

(Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) g The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to a holder for divisional propellent charges and similarly arranged units.

In a round of ammunition for trench mortars it is customary to issue the round with a maximum propellent charge and then to remove a por- 0 tion of the charge as occasion requires.

The purpose of this invention is to provide a simple form of propellent charge holder which will maintain the charge in its proper place to insure ignition and which may be readily moved when it is desired to remove a portion of the charge. I

A further object is to so form the holder that it will not become detached from the projectile and remain in the mortar and that it will offer a minimum of resistance to flight of the projectile.

To these and other ends, the invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of elements described hereinafter and pointed out in the claim forming a part of this specification.

A practical embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the rear end of a projectile equipped with the improved charge holder;

Fig. 2 is a detail plan view of the holder; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the propellent charge. Referring to the drawing by characters of reference there is shown a portion of a projectile of the muzzle loading type adapted to be fired from a trench mortar. The projectile includes a body 5 formed with a tapered tail 6 ending in a reduced stem 1. A tube 8 threaded on the stem is provided on its'rear portion with a plurality of vanes or fins 9 which serve the usual purpose of stabilizing the projectile while in flight.

A cartridge III of the shot-gun type is carried in the rear part of the tube and includes a primer H which is fired when it strikes a pin at the bottom of the mortar. Jlhe tube 8 is provided with a plurality of staggered vents l2 forconducting the flame from the cartridge to a propellent charge l3 which is disposed on the outer side of the tube and forwardly of the fins 9.

The propellent charge l3 consists of a plurality of thin flexible sheets l3a each having a circular opening 14 for receiving the tube 8. Each sheet 5 is also provided with a slit l5 extending from the opening H to the edge and enabling'the sheet to be readily applied to and removed from the tube.

In accordance with the zone system of firing employed with mortars a variable quantity of pro- 10 pellent charge is employed under various circumstances. The round of ammunition is assembled with the maximum charge and a predetermined number of sheets is removed as occasion requires. 15

The sheets constituting the charge are maintained against the flnsor a corresponding abutment and also in line with the vents I2 by means of, a holder l6 which frictionally and resiliently grips the tube and which may be manually moved 29 away from the charge to facilitate removal of certain of the sheets and then restored to a holding position.

The holder It comprises a helically wound coil spring having its ends unitedto form a ring or 25 annulus. When mounted on the tube 8 the inner side of the coil spring ring or annulus engages the tube and the rear face engages the front sheet I 3a of the propellent charge.

I claim:

In a projectile of the type having a tubular member provided to receive a propellent charge in surrounding relation and in engagement with an abutment thereon, a holder adapted to be interposed between the body of the projectile and 35 abutment to retain the propellent charge in engagement with the abutment comprising a helically wound wire spring of such length as to form an annulus adapted to frictionally receive the outside of said tubular member and having 40 its ends joined to form said annulus; whereby the holder is adapted to slidingly engage the outside of the tubular member in contacting relation with the end of the propellent charge remote from. the abutment with suflicient friction to hold propellent charges of different relative lengths axially of the tubular member in engagement with said abutment.

EDWARD J. McCORMICK. 

